The Polemic of Isra' Mi'raj in the Perspective of Mu'tazilite and Sunni Tafsir: A Comparative Study of Al-Kasshaf and Al-Kabir

Spiritual formation for theology study program students is very important, in addition to academic and practical formation. Deep attention to worship as a basis for spiritual formation will lead theology study program students to be ready to become church ministers. The fact in the field is that worship has not been maximally utilized by undergraduate students of the Jakarta School of Theological Philosophy or Jakarta Theological Seminary. This study aims to analyze, describe, and construct how worship as a basis for forming spirituality for undergraduate students of STFT Jakarta in living out their identity as prospective church servants. This research uses a qualitative research method that is descriptive analysis, with three data collection techniques namely document study, observation, and interviews. The results of this study confirm that worship is the basis for the formation of essential spirituality for STFT Jakarta undergraduate students in living their identity as prospective church servants or community servants. There are effectiveness, significance, impact, and values of worship as the formation of spirituality.

This paper investigated the role of Christian higher education institutions’ (CHEIs) influence on Christian spiritual formation among their staff and students in Kenya. Christian spiritual formation is an essential integral part to intellectual development; therefore, the role of CHEIs in facilitation of Christian spiritual information cannot be overemphasized. Christian spiritual formation has become one of the emergent research fields within Christian CHEIs, however, there are limited studies investigating the role of CHEIs in influencing spiritual formation. But it is widely assumed that CHEIs play a leading role in integration of faith and academic studies and debates. The pathway to spiritual formation has four main approaches: firstly, enhanced spiritual growth leading to positive outcomes in the areas of academic performance and leadership development. Secondly, there is also the adoption of key activities to foster sustainable spiritual development. Thirdly, diverse strategies that my lead to improved spiritual development are employed; fourthly, there is the intentional integration of spiritual formation activities into the classroom. For example integrating faith with academic practices, or simply praying in class before and after the lessons. Spiritual formation is fundamental in the future of development of the students’ character, professionalism and most significantly preparation of future leadership. Christian spiritual formation enables the participating stakeholders for both public and a private dynamic role in sustainable leadership. This is a descriptive study and was guided by three objectives, to: investigate the role of the CHEIs in promoting Christian spiritual formation among the staff and students establish the perceptions of Christian spiritual formation among the staff and students among the CHEIs, determine the programmes implemented in the CHEIs to influence Christian spiritual formation for staff and students; finally, investigate the challenges faced by CHEIs in promoting Christian spiritual formation. A qualitative method was adopted to enable the researcher to have an in-depth understanding of the phenomenon; thus data was collected using an interview guide. The findings of the study are as follows: Christian spiritual formation was seen as an opportunity to promote Christ-entered education, preparation for servant leaders, transformation of the world, deepening of spiritual life and character for staff and students, finding God’s purpose, preparation for next generation of leaders establishment of dynamic CHEIs where social and intellectual engagement takes place; social involvement and leadership development, the HEIs role is to enhance Chapel attendance to have corporate worship, service and community life, chaplaincy services and personalized meetings to have encounter with God; having evangelistic ministries to facilitate participation in transformational ministries, discipleship and pastoral care.

Spiritual formation in a Christian context is a con­ti­nu­ous life-long process for a Christian to grow and imitate Christ. This process does not merely occur cognitively and in­di­vi­dual­istically but holistically and communally, and it also ap­p­­lies to senior adults (65 years and above). However, due to historical influences, many chur­ches are still doing a fragmented and segregative spiritual formation. As a result, senior adult parishioners might not grow maximally and tend to be passive and isolated onlookers who merely become ministry targets of the younger ones. There needs to be a paradigm change for the senior adults to keep growing and functioning in the com­mu­­ni­ty as part of their spiritual formation. This article pro­po­ses the significance of spiritual formation for senior adults with a more holistic and intergenerational paradigm which uti­li­zes a qualitative method, including a literature review. According to this study, senior adult parishioners should be served by fol­low­ing God’s design on human nature and through the perspective of ministering-with-senior adults instead of minister­ing­-to-senior adults. This article thus aims to inspire chu­r­ches to apply and develop the spiritual formation of senior adult pa­ri­sh­ioners through the holistic and intergenerational paradigm, not frag­mented and segregative as it used to be.

This study aims to explore the practice of the grave pilgrimage tradition in the Suwung Village, Denpasar, using qualitative methods. Interviews, observations, and document studies were conducted to gather data directly from the Bugis community during the grave pilgrimage. The results of the study show that the majority Hindu Balinese community can accept the Bugis migrants, who are Muslims, to express Islamic traditions in Bali. This expression of Islamic religious tradition is marked by the existence of ancient Islamic manuscripts in Muslim villages, one of which is the Bugis Suwung Village in Denpasar. Specifically, the traditions that are unique in this village are the tradition of Ngeruwah (praying for the spirits of ancestors before the arrival of the month of Ramadan), the tradition of Pagelicing Qur’an (parading the Qur’an), and the tradition of grave pilgrimage. However, the tradition of parading the Qur’an has not been practised since the 1970s. This was done because the tradition was feared to be cultised by the Muslim community in the region.

Indonesia as a country with the largest Muslim population in the world, Indonesia also has a lot of cultural and traditional potential that can be elaborated in halal tourism attractions. This study aims to describe Islamic tradition and religious culture in halal tourism in terms of empirical evidence from Indonesia. This research is a qualitative study using the literature (literature) from previous studies. The library research procedure in this research begins in detail with the selection of topics, then explores information, determines the focus of research, collects data sources, reads data sources, makes research notes, processes research notes, and ends with drawing conclusions. Data collection techniques in this study used editing, organizing, and finding. Data analysis in this study used deductive and interpretative methods. The results show that Islamic tradition and religious culture in the halal tourism industry has a very important role in the halal tourism industry. These two elements are the main attraction in the attraction of halal tourism destinations in In- donesia. Tourists can learn and feel about Islamic tradition and religious culture in halal tourism packages that have religious and kindness values. The integration of Islamic tradition and religious culture in halal tourism is allowed in Islam as long as it does not conflict with Islamic law.

Qualitative research: Thoughts on how to do it; how to judge it; when to use it

<p style="text-align:justify">Spiritual growth and development is frequently cited as an outcome of participation in service-learning projects. However, little research has focused on measuring the students' ability to understand the connection between the service-learning experience and their personal faith and the ability to live out their Christian values in the field. Notably missing from this particularly limited area of study is the Christian values convergence of being able to understand the worth of all people and a desire to be engaged in serving the community. Encompassing both quantitative and qualitative research methods, this study investigates undergraduate business students’ perceptions of the impact of a semester-long urban service-learning project on their spiritual lives and faith formation. Specific attention is given to exploring the students' perception of faith as demarcated by the Christian praxis of the students' relationship with God and with others.</p>

Islamic education is faced with two dilemmas: the demands of modernism and the preservation of the Islamic scientific tradition. This dilemma requires Islamic educational institutions to accommodate both demands in the curriculum. SMA Negeri 1 Adiluwih seeks to develop a curriculum model that integrates modern research and Islamic tradition, which is the focus of this research, including the challenges faced. This research uses qualitative methods based on phenomenological studies with data collection techniques of observation, interviews, and documentation studies. The results reveal that efforts include improving teacher competence, integrating learning materials, and project-based learning. This research-based curriculum and Islamic tradition have positively contributed to the learning process by integrating Islamic values and encouraging students to think critically and reflectively. Development challenges include limited resources and external support, especially from parents. This research corroborates Fazlur Rahman's theory of reformulating Islamic education that integrates modern science with Islamic scientific traditions to answer the challenges of the times. Rahman emphasizes the importance of a research-based approach to building critical understanding, as applied in the curriculum model of SMA Negeri 1 Adiluwih.

Spiritual formation is a critical component in faith development toward Christlikeness. When the Christians are no longer growing, they are actively dying. Therefore, various efforts need to be made to help Christians grow. However, many spiritual formation efforts are still segregated, fragmented, or isolated from other discourses. This approach tends to focus only on the spiritual dimension and ignores that an individual has complex dimensions that cannot be separated from one another. To realize a more holistic spiritual formation, this article explores some developmental psychological theories to find approaches that might help to nurture the faith of believers holistically. The research method employed for this research is descriptive qualitative. Data collection was done by library research on various developmental theories from various developmentalists. From the results of the investigation, the author found different insights to realize more effective spiritual formation, namely by involving the community as a social context, taking into account every human dimension, giving space to the process, accommodating the nature of spiritual growth as multi-faceted and multi-directional, and presenting various experiences in the process of forming spiritual disciplines.

Who is sensitising whom? A participatory interview guide development as an awareness tool within a health care research project

پژوهش حاضر به منظور شناسایی زمینه‌های همکاری و تعامل آموزشی بین مدارس متوسطه و دانشکده‌های روان‌شناسی و علوم تربیتی شهر تهران و با استفاده از روش کیفی داده بنیاد انجام گرفته است. جامعه آماری پژوهش شامل کلیه دست‌اندرکاران و صاحبنطران دانشگاهی و آموزش و پرورش می‌باشد که در ارتباط با موضوع تعامل آموزشی بین مدارس و دانشگاه‌ها، به نوعی دارای سابقه اجرایی و یا علمی هستند. از میان جامعه آماری، 26 نفر از طریق نمونه‌گیری هدفمند تا رسیدن به اشباع نظری انتخاب شده‌اند. داده‌ها با استفاده از مصاحبه‌های نیمه‌ساختاریافته جمع‌آوری شده است. به منظور تجزیه و تحلیل داده‌های حاصل از مصاحبه، از کدگذاری استفاده شده است. برای بررسی روایی و پایایی پژوهش، از تأیید مصاحبه‌شوندگان برای کنترل روایی پژوهش بهره گرفته شده است و در ارتباط با پایایی نیز، توافق یا همخوانی بین دو کدگذار در کدگذاری چهار مصاحبه، محاسبه گردیده است. ضریب توافق به دست آمده، 85/0 بوده که حاکی از توافق و همخوانی بالا و نیز ضریب پایایی مناسب می‌باشد. یافته‌های پژوهش نشان داد که مدارس متوسطه و دانشکده‌های روان‌شناسی و علوم تربیتی شهر تهران می‌توانند در سه زمینه کلی پشتیبانی از دانش‌آموزان، آماده‌سازی دانش‌آموزان برای دانشگاه، و حمایت و پشتیبانی از معلمان و کارکنان مدرسه و 31 زمینه جزئی با یکدیگر همکاری و تعامل آموزشی داشته باشند.

Departing from the complexity of the Islamic theological landscape of the 10th to 11th centuries AD, which was marked by tensions between philosophical rationalism, theological doctrine, and spiritual needs, this study aims to explore Al-Ghazali's thoughts and his contributions to the Islamic theological tradition. By using qualitative methods through a literature study of Al-Ghazali's works, this study found that Al-Ghazali responded to the epistemic crisis of his time through a fundamental critique of Hellenistic philosophy in Tahafut al-Falasifah and reconstructed the foundations of Islamic belief through a synthesis of sharia, aqidah, and Sufism in Ihya Ulum al-Din. Al-Ghazali's synthesis is a holistic and applicable theological paradigm that combines three main pillars of the Islamic tradition into a coherent framework. Al-Ghazali's contribution lies in his success in this synthesis, which not only placed the spiritual dimension at the core of belief but also bridged the dialectic between reason and revelation. Ultimately, Al-Ghazali's thought provided a fundamental contribution to integrating the Sunni tradition and creating balance in the discourse of the Islamic theological tradition

The Qur'an, as the holy book of Islam, holds immeasurable value as the primary guide in both spiritual and worldly life. The importance of memorizing the Qur'an as a spiritual practice for Muslims has been a integral tradition in Islam since the time of Prophet Muhammad SAW. The Al-Qosimi method has proven to be one of the effective approaches in enhancing the efficiency of Qur'an memorization. This study aims to evaluate the implementation of the Al-Qosimi method in the process of Qur'an memorization at MIS IT Nurul Iman. In this research, a quantitative phenomenological method is employed, utilizing interviews, observations, and documentation as data collection techniques. The results of the study indicate that the Al-Qosimi method plays a significant role in improving the effectiveness of Qur'an memorization for students at MIS IT Nurul Iman. However, challenges faced include the lack of understanding and mastery of the Al-Qosimi method among teachers. Nonetheless, further training efforts have been undertaken to address this issue. The positive impact of implementing this method is evident from the good achievements in Qur'an memorization by fourth-grade students, where the majority of them have successfully memorized Juz 30. Therefore, the Al-Qosimi method can serve as an effective guideline in Qur'an memorization and can have a positive impact on the formation of students' character and spirituality.

Reviewed by: Lift Every Voice and Swing: Black Musicians and Religious Culture in the Jazz Century by Vaughn A. Booker Brett Grainger Lift Every Voice and Swing: Black Musicians and Religious Culture in the Jazz Century. By Vaughn A. Booker. New York: New York University Press, 2020. 344 pp. $35.00. Scholarly narratives on African American religion have long centered on the Black church and its predecessor, "slave religion" (what Albert Raboteau called the "invisible institution"). In both cases, Protestant influences, themes, and institutional forms have dominated discussion. In recent decades, however, scholarship has widened to encompass non-Protestant and post-Protestant modes of religiosity, including Afro-Catholicism, Black Islam, and Afro-Diasporic traditions. Taken together, these developments have decentered the "Black [End Page 78] church" in American religious history by questioning its monopoly over African American religious and cultural life. Vaughn Booker's new work returns our attention to mainstream denominations and church life, but for a different purpose: to show the ways in which twentieth-century jazz musicians leveraged their celebrity to become "race representatives"—ambassadors of Black respectability to the white world—alongside religious leaders, advancing social and cultural progress for other African Americans and helping to transform the reputation of jazz from the devil's music to high art. Drawing upon a rich archive of popular materials—interviews and articles in the Black and white press, private writings, and a number of other sources—Booker demonstrates how jazz musicians embodied beliefs and practices that both mirrored and diverged from those of the Black church. The book is divided into two parts. Part I, "Representations of Religion and Race," describes how, early on, middle-class Black ministers worked to resist the rising popularity of jazz among their younger congregants. Their efforts failed, but with an ironic result: as the press held up jazz men and women as spokespersons for their race, these same artists came to see themselves as burdened with the responsibility of representation, turning the stage into a kind of pulpit. Booker focuses on three ways in which jazz artists performed religion for the public: through their "irreverent performances of African American religious leadership and expressive acts of worship," their "commitment to black Protestants' social and political activism against Jim Crow," and their "sacralization of 'Africa' in narratives of African American history" (13). If the second theme might come as less of a surprise to readers, the first and third themes are less well documented, and Vaughn presents them in especially striking and memorable ways. In chapter two, which focuses on Cab Calloway, Booker surprises and delights by situating the multitalented singer and bandleader within a long tradition of "religious irreverence." Chapter 4, "Royal Ancestry," moves from irreverence to reverence, showing how the "sacred concerts" of Duke Ellington, among other explicitly religious jazz works, presented an African American history "emerging from, and connected to, a sacred African past that included both biblical scriptures and ancient African civilizations," a story that effectively rendered "the enslaved African experience in the United State … as an extension of that sacred African history" (16). In Part II, "Missions and Legacies," Booker foregrounds the religious thought and practice of two pianists and composers, Duke Ellington and Mary Lou Williams. Booker attends to the ways Ellington struggled to articulate his theological beliefs as he navigated a variety [End Page 79] of religious settings, revealing how his sacred concerts were conceived less as an authentic recapitulation of the Black Protestant traditions of his childhood than an ecumenical religious project directed to an explicitly white liberal Protestant audience. Roman Catholicism receives the most sustained attention in the two chapters devoted to Williams, who Josef Sorett has described as the most famous Afro-Catholic convert of the post-war era, a period that saw a massive increase in African American affiliation with Catholicism. The seventh chapter explores Williams's religious journey to the Catholic faith. Booker ably narrates how Williams's loss of her friend, bebop pioneer Charlie ("Bird") Parker, to a heroin overdose contributed to her decision to convert and how Williams struggled with whether to give up music entirely until a number of friends, including several jazz-loving clergy, convinced her to use...

Scholars and practitioners increasingly consider the spiritual development of leaders to be essential, not only for individual well-being, but that of the culture at large. This is particularly important for clergy, a profession centered on spiritual leadership. While the institutions in which most Protestant ministers pursue training have historically privileged scholarship over spirituality, this has changed substantially since the Association of Theological Schools (ATS) added spiritual development of students to its accreditation standards in 1992. Since then, seminaries have sought to comply in various ways. This study explored two Protestant seminaries, addressing these questions: (a) what is the process seminaries engage in as they seek to implement a model for the spiritual development of leaders? (b) What is the lived experience of leaders who are impacted by a seminary's spiritual formation approach? (c) How do seminaries provide formational opportunities for a leader's personal faith, emotional maturity, moral integrity, and public witness/social concern, as mandated in the ATS standards for accreditation? (d) How does the spiritual formation model of a seminary that added it to an established structure compare to that of one that incorporated it from the start? Using qualitative methodologies, this study relied upon extensive document analysis, interviews (with alumni, students, administrators and faculty), a student focus group and on-site participant observation. The findings suggested that (a) the core values of seminary founders sets the trajectory for the institution's spirituality emphasis (b) key leaders—high level administrators as well as faculty members—play an integral role, not only in implementing, sustaining and supporting the spiritual formation model, but in the personal development of students themselves, and (c) changes in the culture and student demographics increasingly elevate the need for a curricular approach to spiritual formation. This study should be of interest to anyone interested in Protestant theological education. Professional schools may also gain insights into the challenges involved in seeking to integrate professional, personal, human and spiritual values into their programs. Finally, the study has heuristic value, providing impetus for future exploration into how organizations and leaders can better embody and reflect human and spiritual values.